A Multi-purpose utility tunnel (MUT) is one of the civil infrastructures in urban areas, which accommodates several networks, such as electrical cables, gas, water, and sewer pipes, inside a tunnel. There are several benefits of MUTs compared to buried utilities. However, MUTs are not widely used at the time being due to the high initial construction cost and the need for coordination among utility owners. Building information modeling (BIM) is becoming the main coordination tool for building projects. BIM has been extended to civil infrastructures, such as bridges, roads, and sewer networks. However, BIM extension for MUT information modeling (MUTIM) is yet to be developed. This paper aims to investigate a method for extending BIM to MUT projects taking advantage of similar developments for other infrastructure systems. In addition, a systematic approach for MUTIM use cases is proposed. Five use cases of MUTIM were mentioned in this paper: (1) design review for checking compliance with standards and constructability; (2) 3D coordination for clash detection and resolution; (3) ergonomic design for human accessibility and comfort during construction, inspection and maintenance activities; (4) phase planning for construction and maintenance scheduling using 4D simulation; and (5) quantity takeoff for cost estimation. The first two MUTIM use cases are discussed in detail. A case study is developed to demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed approach. The presented MUTIM approach can improve MUT projects design and coordination efficiency, and reduce project cost, which are the main barriers for promoting MUTs.
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